HalfLife Integral
by NW330
Summary: The story of Half-Life from a different perspective. An intern goes in for his first day, a very unlucky day at that. R&R appreciated. COMPLETED!
1. Intro

Half-Life Integral  
  
Intro  
  
First day of work for me, actually I wouldn't even call it work. I'm an intern for this person who works at Black Mesa Research Facility. I was surprised I was accepted to intern there. I never even met the sponsor for this position either. I was just informed I'd intern today and serve under Dr. Gina Cross.  
  
I walked to the Topside Transit Hub and waited for the train to the facility where Dr. Cross would be waiting for me. Nobody else was waiting for my train so I'd be alone on this ride.  
  
Once it arrived I entered the train and it promptly began its journey through the complex. Passing through a series of caverns and finally something that looked like a cafeteria area with scientists and security guards eating. Then the automated voice came on.  
  
"Hello and welcome to the Black Mesa Transit System. Please keep your limbs inside the train at all times, in the event of an emergency please make sure handicapped persons are evacuated first."  
  
No worries there for me.  
  
"Current Topside Temperature is 98 degrees. The Black Mesa Compound is maintained at a constant temperature of 74 degrees."  
  
Didn't seem that hot outside.  
  
"This train is inbound from Level A Topside Dormitories to the Anomalous Materials Lab, Section R."  
  
The rest of the things said were just boring and I forgot them all. After a long ride I arrived at the platform.  
  
"Please remain in the train until the Security Guard verifies your identity. Before exiting the train be sure to gather your personal belongings."  
  
"Hey there kid. Never seen you here before." The guard told me.  
  
"I'm new here. Supposed to be interning for Dr. Cross." I said to him. He wore a blue shirt with matching pants and wore a security vest and helmet over his clothes and carried what looked like a Beretta 9mm handgun in a holster at his side.  
  
"Oh I was told to expect you. Didn't expect someone so young. Just wait for a moment and I'll be transferring you down to the entrance point." He said pushing a few buttons on this console on the platform. The train then began to move down.  
  
SUBJECT: Gray Johnstone  
  
MALE  
  
AGE: 19  
  
POSITION: Intern for Dr. Gina Cross  
  
SECURITY CLEARANCE: None  
  
ASSIGNMENT: Carry out Dr. Cross's instructions and maintain some order within Black Mesa Facility  
  
ADMINISTRATIVE SPONSOR: Classified  
  
The train stopped at the designated area and the door opened. I got out and moved onwards towards a large door.  
  
"Hold on. I'll open the door from this side." Someone said as I heard a series of buttons being pressed. Then the large door opened.  
  
A security guard similar to the one above greeted me.  
  
"Morning. Dr. Cross's Office is down the small hallway. You can't miss it; her name is printed on the door." He told me as I nodded and walked onward.  
  
Scientists stared as I moved along, they must be wondering how a young person got here. Eventually I reached Dr. Cross's office. I knocked and the door swung open and it was empty.  
  
I looked around the room and I didn't see anyone. Then I heard this yawning coming from behind me. I looked and this person wearing this orange suit of armor was waking up from this couch. It was a woman who wasn't stunning; she was just average in appearance I'd say.  
  
"Oh, you must be Gray. I'm Dr. Gina Cross, but call me Gina. Now I'm sorry but I have to get somewhere to help with today's experiment. It'll only take 20 minutes then I'll be back and get you to work. Make yourself at home." She said leaving her office.  
  
Great now I'm stuck here doing nothing until she gets back. This day is starting to suck. Eventually another security guard came by. He looked in at me.  
  
"Hey there. Gina must have been off to that experiment. Don't worry about it she'll be back soon. Here, I'll buy you a drink. We'll be back in time." He offered me. I took his offer nicely. "Oh the name's Roberts." He said as we walked to a train like the one I took this morning.  
  
"This will take us to a small snack bar I know." Roberts told me as the train moved forward along this construction path. Then the lights were all flickering strangely. "It's probably those guys experimenting; they always do this kind of stuff."  
  
Then the train stopped completely.  
  
"Warning Main Power Failure" a robotic voice said over the intercom.  
  
Then everything was moving fine. As we came out of a tunnel we saw some platforms with scientists and guards around wondering what was happening. Then the lights went weird again.  
  
"Warning! Electromagnetic Field Detected in Sector C!" the robotic voice said.  
  
The train began to rumble as these green things started appearing and explosions were happening all around. Then strange creatures were appearing. First were these yellow dogs and then brownish aliens that began attacking everything around. Our train began to jolt forward as electricity struck the back tearing the covering off of it. Then a green bolt hit me and everything was dark.  
  
I began to breathe heavily. Then it all returned. I was still on the train with Roberts who was shooting creatures that looked harmful with his sidearm. I was feeling odd again and blacked out to another area.  
  
I was on some organic platform with yellowish crystals and some strange background. Then in another area with these hulking soldiers with deformed right arms surrounding me. Then all went dark again. 


	2. First Hazard

Half-Life Integral  
  
First Hazard  
  
I came to on a platform. The train I was on crashed into it and was mangled and destroyed. Roberts stood in front of me and helped me to stand.  
  
"Whoa, I thought you died in the crash, guess we both got the devil's luck eh kid? Seems like something went terribly wrong and everything is all in chaos. Maybe if we both work together we can make it out alive." He told me as I began to walk on my own.  
  
We both walked into a hallway and the vents overhead burst open and these crabs jumped down.  
  
"Don't worry I can take them." Roberts said firing and killing all three. "Those will look good in my trophy room."  
  
We kept moving forward until we reached a door marked Hazard Materials. I entered and no aliens or anything attacked.  
  
In the corner was this blue suit that looked like Gina's. I went over and Roberts helped me into it. I put on the helmet and the voice inside it talked to me.  
  
"Welcome to the HEV Mark Four Protective System, for use in hazardous environment conditions."  
  
"Looks like you're lucky; a spare Hazard Suit was here. It should help you against these monsters. But you may need to rely on me for long range fighting."  
  
I looked around and a crowbar was on the floor next to an open crate. I picked up the crowbar and looked in the crate. A battery of some kind. The suit reacted and I plugged it into the chest area.  
  
"Power at 15 percent."  
  
"Let's go." I said from the suit. The Helmet provided a Heads up Display of my health condition and my suits power.  
  
Roberts and I walked further killing more aliens until we reached a barricaded door.  
  
"Maybe you can crawl through the vent here and reach another area. I'll try to find another way around." Roberts said as we parted. I hacked open the vent with my only weapon and crawled through it. The suits flashlight came in very handy.  
  
All of a sudden the vent broke and I slid out of it into this tunnel. I landed in water so it didn't hurt. Wading through it I climbed out and walked along the side into a security room.  
  
"Hey. I tried to find a way out but got wounded along the way." An injured guard said slumping on the wall "I'd help but I can barely breathe. Take my sidearm; I can't even pick it up now. That thing on the desk has been making noises from time to time. Maybe you can figure out what it is." He said.  
  
I placed the crowbar into this area on the suit and it stored it. Once I picked up the handgun it displayed the bullets in the chamber and spare ammunition I had, which was none. Picking up some magazines on the desk I also placed this disk like device into the chest plate. I heard Gina's voice.  
  
"Hello, can someone hear me?" she said.  
  
"Gina?"  
  
"Gray, thank god. I thought you died because I didn't find you in my office. I'm trying to find my own way out too. Maybe from where you are you can work your way through the canals and over to the Sector C train platform where I am." She told me.  
  
"I'll try my best Gina." I said.  
  
I exited the room and found another vent at the other end of the tunnel. I crawled through and these crabs attacked again, luckily I shot and killed them before they could do too much harm.  
  
"Minor lacerations detected." The suits voice said.  
  
"Good thing I have this." I said.  
  
Crawling further I looked through the floor and saw a man wearing a Hazard Suit the same color as Gina's and he was walking through an office complex by the looks of it.  
  
Eventually I ended up in this pumping station and two pumps were there but only one was working. Luckily the switch for the stopped one was near it. I switched it to on. Then the offline one began to work. Unfortunately it overloaded and the water it was pumping overflowed.  
  
"Oh shit! Now what?" I said as water began to flow until it reached the ceiling. "If I stay I'll drown. Where can I go?" Now the O2 monitor turned on and my condition became worse.  
  
Swimming frantically I found a service shaft with an open vent. I went in and my health returned to normal after I exited the water. Working through the vents, monster free by the way, I fell again in some hallway. A dead security guard was there and I took the magazine from his gun and added it to my stash.  
  
Then I was on a platform. "There you are!" I heard someone say.  
  
It was Gina. "Thank god you made it. I don't want my intern dead the first day. That hazard suit should keep you safe through most of this. Turns out this train works but it may not get us very far. However it's the only way to go. Willing to take it with me?"  
  
"Yeah, I want to get the hell out of here." I told her.  
  
We stepped onto the train and it began to move. The voice was badly distorted.  
  
"T-t-thiS TRaiN is InBOund. FrOM s-s-s-s-SECtoR C. Please Keeeeeep your limbs inside the TRAIn at ALL time." Then it gave out.  
  
"Well together maybe we can find a way out of this madness Gray." Gina told me as we ascended. 


	3. The Surface

Half-Life Integral  
  
The Surface  
  
The train we were on was still heading up the shaft by the large elevator the tracks were on. It would be awhile before we reached the top.  
  
"How did all this happen?" I asked.  
  
"I have no idea. When I left my office I had to transport this sample we collected to the test chamber. On my way back everything went black and stuff started going nuts. My hazard suit was keeping me alive but I needed to find a way out of here. I went back to look for you, but you weren't there." Gina explained as best she could.  
  
"These Hazard Suits are pretty amazing. I'll have to thank the person who made them." I said.  
  
"You're welcome."  
  
"You designed these?" I asked amazed.  
  
"Yes. I came up with the design but didn't single handedly build them. It's the reason I'm the holographic guide in the Hazard Course." None of that made much sense but I accepted it.  
  
The train reached the top. It proceeded along this old looking tunnel that was rather small compared to the other ones. Then we spotted a sign above us that signaled the exit tunnel. However no sooner did we clear that tunnel did a large explosion occur in front of us. A giant hole was created in front and the train's auto brake couldn't keep us from falling.  
  
"Hurry out the back!" Gina called diving out the back of the train. I did the same just as the train fell down the pit. A few seconds later we heard a large explosion below.  
  
"That was sure close." I said breathing hard.  
  
Gina walked over to the pit and examined it.  
  
"What, you think the aliens did it? Or maybe the train was faulty?" I asked.  
  
"This wasn't an accident. These markings are too precise to be an accident. Somebody wanted this track to be destroyed." She told me.  
  
"Who would do that?"  
  
"I have no idea."  
  
We walked back through the tunnels and came across the maintenance door.  
  
"This service elevator might be able to take us further up." I told Gina.  
  
After collected all the supplies in the room we could we headed up the cramped elevator. I managed to get a few more magazines for my pistol while Gina found a few more rounds for her shotgun.  
  
Once we reached the top we both got out and looked around. We were in some kind of storage warehouse, a deserted one at that.  
  
Making our way through the maze of large crates we saw a scientist fall to the ground nearby. We rushed over to him to see if he was alive.  
  
"Are you alright?" I asked him.  
  
"Hurry. They've taken the surface. Be carefu..." was he could say before he died.  
  
"You think he means the aliens?" I asked Gina.  
  
"Probably. But look at this wound." She said. I looked down and there were three well placed dots on his chest resembling gunshots.  
  
"It looks like he was shot."  
  
"Correct. And too my knowledge these alien creature don't have the knowledge to operate firearms. Somebody, a human, did this to him." Gina explained.  
  
"This is getting freaky. Let's just find a way out of this place." I suggested to my female companion.  
  
"Good plan. I'll lead." She said. The main door was partially open just enough for a person to fit through. We both arrived on the surface of the base.  
  
"Just great." I heard Gina mutter.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"There isn't any exit here. We have to go further. Maybe if we can find a vehicle we can leave." She said walking to another warehouse by the looks of it. Then all of a sudden the warehouse was hit by a rocket.  
  
We both fell from the impact and looked behind us. We didn't see anything.  
  
"What did that?" I asked.  
  
"I have no idea. At least that explosion opened the door for us." She said looking on the bright side.  
  
Once inside we found yet another elevator, well it was a heavy lift for vehicles and such.  
  
"Guess we have to head down huh?" I asked Gina knowing the answer.  
  
"Yes."  
  
We got on and it started itself. Which I was amazed by.  
  
"Gray, I'm sorry you have to go through all this. Had I known this would happen today I'd have canceled your work for the day." Gina apologized.  
  
"Gina, don't treat me like a special case. I think each and every living human being in this place is saying the exact same thing. We have to worry about saving our asses instead of being sorry for them." I told her. It felt like BS to me but Gina seemed to understand.  
  
"You're right."  
  
The lift reached the bottom and we were met by several security guards holding guns to us.  
  
"Lower your weapons. Dr. Cross it is good to see you alive." A scientist said approaching Gina.  
  
"Who is this?" he asked looking at me.  
  
"This is Gray, he's my intern."  
  
"Well I'm glad to see you alive as well. Nobody should have to go through this ordeal alone. Come we've set up a small area hiding from them." The scientist said leading us through a series of security doors.  
  
Inside was a set of ammunition and a spare shotgun I was allowed to take. I used the HEV Chargers on the wall to raise my suits power to 100 percent. I was in perfect condition.  
  
"Well now Dr. Peters. Could you please explain what is going on?" Gina asked sitting down on a metal crate. I did the same.  
  
"Well a few hours ago several people on the science team met with the Administrator and it seems the military is coming to rescue us." Dr. Peters began.  
  
"Great. We don't have to worry anymore." I said sounding happy.  
  
"However, that is not the truth. The military landed here about an hour ago and they have been occupying ever area of the base they can find, and what's worse is they have taken a habit of killing a number of us." He explained further.  
  
"Killing us? They kill scientists and security guards?" I asked amazed not believing it.  
  
"I'm afraid so. It appears that when they were sent to contain the disaster that they are ordered to kill everyone in the base so information about these projects gets out. We hid down here so they can't get to us." Dr. Peters said finishing his explanation.  
  
"Well there must be a way around the military. We need to get out of here." I suggested.  
  
"There is a large door down here that we have been unable to open, because the door has no power to it. If you two could somehow work your way back up to the surface to Area 7 you might be able to recalibrate the power nodes and restore power to the area. We only ask you two because your hazard suits would keep you alive longer than any of us. Then again you could choose to ignore us, it is up to you." Peters finished.  
  
"Well Gina, what should we do?" I asked.  
  
"I sure don't want to stay down here, but I don't want to face a military death squad up there. Options are very limited right now I'm afraid." She said sounding hopeless.  
  
"Well I agree with that but our Hazard Suits should keep us alive enough up there. Maybe there is a back way so we can avoid the majority of the military." I pondered.  
  
"Actually there is. I found this service lift that will take you to a warehouse on the far side of Area 7. It'll be some hike over to the power nodes but the military might not expect it." A security guard spoke up.  
  
"Well Gina it's up to you." I told her.  
  
"Alright, we might as well. It's better than staying down here forever." She said as the guard showed us to the elevator.  
  
Up we went until we reached a similar warehouse like before. We saw these two grunts in the military by the looks of it guarding the wide open door. We listened to them. Our HEV suits picked up radio conversation.  
  
"Guard duty sucks! I'd rather be with an infantry squad wrecking some havoc down there."  
  
"Tell me about it. But why the hell are we here anyway? A bunch of scientists and security guards don't seem much like a terrorist organization to me."  
  
"No shit man, but what about those rumors of aliens attacking us? I heard Goose Squad was busted up pretty bad."  
  
"Yeah, I heard Corporal Shepard was the only guy still alive from that squad, but we haven't seen him."  
  
Gina and I now decided on what to do next.  
  
"We could just fire at them; it would take them by surprise." I suggested.  
  
"But we have to get them quickly otherwise they may warn others and we'd be swarmed." She told me getting her shotgun ready.  
  
We both rushed out firing like crazy at them. The two grunts were totally surprised and had no time to even pull the trigger once.  
  
Staring down at their corpses the situation hit me. Not only were aliens from some other world attacking us but now our own species is out to see us dead.  
  
"Here, we can use their weapons." Gina said tossing me one of their MP5s as she took the other. My Heads Up Display told me that this weapon used the same ammunition the handgun I had did.  
  
"It seems if we head further along in this direction we'll reach the power nodes soon." Gina told me pointing to a small hill in the distance.  
  
We tread carefully to avoid detection while jumping over objects and crawling through tight areas. Eventually we reached another warehouse and we heard the military was in there.  
  
"We'd better be careful." Gina said checking her weapon. I did the same. Then we leaned over and both shot at the soldier in the gas mask who died before he knew what hit him.  
  
"Recon! Hostiles!" we heard over our radios.  
  
Running in separate directions we fired like mad at the grunts below us. We were hit a number of times but our suits kept us living and breathing.  
  
I made my way down a set of stairs as we were above them and surprised the remaining two firing and killing one and wounding the other. Gina sent a rain of bullets at the wounded one killing him.  
  
"How you holding up Doctor?" I asked.  
  
"My HUD tells me I'm at 87 health and have 14 percent suit power. I'll make it. How about you?"  
  
"I've got 65 health and 34 percent power. I should be fine if I keep my suit power up." I told her. She followed me down as we shared the ammo from the dead grunts.  
  
"We should almost be there. Hurry." She said. We ran through the only open door which was in the direction we were going. We arrived at the power nodes on top of the hill. It was a large antenna with several computers around it.  
  
"Okay, cover me while I activate the nodes. Keep me safe Gray." Gina said running to a computer preparing to activate the nodes. I readied my MP5 and prepared for the worst. Grunts came from the warehouse we were just in. I guess that squad must have sent for backup.  
  
I took aim and fired at them not stopping until they were dead or I had to reload. Bullets were flying everywhere. My suit power was getting low and my health had dropped below 50 now.  
  
"Hold on Gray I'm almost there!" Gina yelled over the gunfire.  
  
I still fired and then ran out of ammo. Switching to my pistol I fired what little ammo for that I had since I used most of it for the MP5. I had killed about 5 grunts and 3 more were still left. One dropped as I ran out of ammo for my pistol. Now with just a shotgun I was in trouble.  
  
"It's done!" Gina said as the nodes powered up. She took aim and killed the remaining grunts.  
  
"How are you holding up?" She asked bending over me. I was on my knees, my suit was damaged and blood was dripping through it. I was breathing heavily, my health at a mere 42 and no suit power to protect me.  
  
"I'd better get you back to the bunker or at least to a wall mounted medkit." She said preparing to grab me and help me back when the nodes began to spark and overload.  
  
In one large explosion I was falling now. I didn't know what had happened but I just blacked out after I felt myself hit the ground below. 


	4. Separation Anxiety

Half-Life Integral  
  
Separation Anxiety  
  
I don't know how long I was out for, it seemed like forever. I eventually woke up to my HEV's voice.  
  
"Warning. User death imminent. Seek medical attention. Administering morphine...morphine administered."  
  
I was dying, I could feel it. My suit's chest area was broken in several pieces with blood staining it and I could feel myself slipping away. I had to make it to someplace safe or I'd be dead soon.  
  
I mustered all my strength to stand against the wall. I looked behind me and saw a large chunk of rubble blocking one path of the tunnel I was in. That explosion must have trapped me down in a tunnel below.  
  
I began to edge along the concrete wall forwards feeling slight pain from it. If not for the morphine I would be on the ground crying in pain. Hell if not for the suit I'd be dead.  
  
I came to this large class door shut tightly and this is when the pain and bleeding caused me to pass out.  
  
Now I really thought that I was dead. I had come this far and then died like many of the people working here. I can't believe my life ended so fast.  
  
Then I began to hear voices. Several men and a woman. Was it Gina? Did she find me?  
  
"How is he?" the woman asked.  
  
"He'll pull through. Thank god he was wearing a Hazard Suit." One of the male's said.  
  
I groaned as my eyes opened. The intense light burned a little but I adjusted quickly.  
  
"Doctor he's awake." Another man said.  
  
"Oh thank goodness." The female voice said.  
  
"What happened?" I said weakly.  
  
"You collapsed outside our little base here and we found you and saved your life." The woman said.  
  
"Oh, thank you. Will I live?" I asked.  
  
"Oh yes. If not for your Hazard Suit you'd have been dead hours ago." A male scientist with glasses told me.  
  
I looked at the woman now. She was in a Hazard Suit herself and looked more beautiful than Gina did.  
  
"Who are you?" I asked looking at her.  
  
"My name is Collette Green. Who might you be?"  
  
"My name is Gray. Do you know someone named Gina?" I asked her.  
  
"You know Dr. Cross? How?" she asked.  
  
"I'm her new intern." I said.  
  
"Well now. You're safe down here with us. The only way out is through these old piping systems and I doubt the military will want to wade down there to get to us. It seems we can just wait this whole mess out. We have enough food and weapons to survive here for awhile." A black scientist told me.  
  
"But I have to get out of here. Gina probably thinks I'm dead and I have to leave myself. I don't want to spend all my time down here waiting. It could take days or even weeks before this all ends." I protested.  
  
"Something tells me you'll still leave if we say otherwise." The man in glasses said shaking his head.  
  
"It's too dangerous for you kid." Collette said holding my shoulders with her gloved hands. "You'd be dead in moments before you made it anywhere safe."  
  
"You're right." She looked calmer, until I said. "Where is my Hazard Suit?"  
  
"We managed to repair it thanks to the nanotechnology inside it and some of our own technology and it should be working now." The man with glasses said.  
  
"Walter! You didn't have to tell him." Collette said.  
  
"I'm sorry Dr. Green. However we found no weapons on you when we found you. You'll have to settle for what we've got. Follow Barney over there." He directed to a security guard.  
  
"Come with me kid. I'll show you to your things." He said opening a safe door and inside was my Hazard Suit and several guns and ammunition, enough to take over half the base.  
  
I suited up and it felt great being back inside it. "Welcome to the HEV mark four protective system. For use in hazardous environment conditions." It said to me like the first time I put it on.  
  
I then grabbed all I could once my helmet was on. I found a pistol like the one before, a shotgun, and plenty of ammo for each. It was all I could get.  
  
Barney then showed me down a small hallway to a large door. "The military isn't here but there are probably monster galore around the place. I'll come with you but it won't be the safest path." He told me.  
  
"I don't think there is any safe path here anymore." I told him.  
  
Hadley, Barney's last and preferred name, and I were wondering around this dark place for about half an hour without any monster encounters when we took a rest.  
  
"Must suck for you kid." He said.  
  
"Why?"  
  
"A 19 year old going through this sort of hell. It isn't pretty."  
  
"Well I don't think age has much of a factor here. We're all going through hell."  
  
"By the way kid. Where were you when this all went wrong? I've been interested in knowing all the different stories." He asked.  
  
"I was in Gina's office while she went off for an experiment and then this security guard, Roberts, came by and was going to buy me a drink. While on the train everything went crazy and these beams and bolts hit everything. Then I was teleported twice to some strange places and then the train crashed into the platform and that's how it happened." I told Hadley.  
  
"Well here's my story. I was working shift around Sector G and I had to go down to the train platform. My buddy Calhoun was off to his own job then, but once I got to the train platform the lights went out and then these strange creatures began to chase after scientists. I followed one down a tunnel and it got blocked off by debris and we both ended up down here. Not as dangerous as your story but it felt it." He told me.  
  
"Well think you want to continue now?" I asked my friend.  
  
"Sure." He said as we heard footsteps coming from the direction we came from. "Do you hear something?" he whispered.  
  
"Yeah. Someone's coming. I'll hide over there and jump them, and then you get ready to beat them or whatever if they need it." I told him taking my place as Hadley drew his sidearm.  
  
Once the person came into view I tackled them to the cement floor. "I got him Barney!" I shouted triumphantly.  
  
"Let go of me!" I heard the person yell. It wasn't a soldier or an alien like we expected, it was Collette.  
  
"Oops, sorry about that Dr. Green." Hadley told her as we helped her stand. She dusted off her Hazard Suit and picked up the shotgun she dropped.  
  
"What are you doing here Collette?" I asked her.  
  
"They decided I should go along and help you two out. My Hazard Suit will keep me alive and with three of us our chances of living are greater." She explained to us.  
  
"Hey Doc, could you tell us your end of the story?" Barney asked.  
  
"Huh?"  
  
"He's interested in what you were doing while Black Mesa became hell." I told her.  
  
"Well I had to assist Gina with getting this crystal sample on the delivery carrier for the experiment. We successfully got it on and Gina was heading down to deliver it. I was heading back to put back my Hazard Suit when the facility started rumbling and then alarms went off everywhere. I got so scared I didn't know what to do. I ran as far as I could until I ended up down in that place we found you Gray." She told us.  
  
Then Barney and I told her our sides of the story. Even though it was a scary thing I enjoy hearing it to get an idea of what happened elsewhere.  
  
"We should continue along this tunnel. Maybe we can find a way to the surface or at least maybe somewhere else safe." Hadley told us.  
  
"The Lambda Complex should be safe. They were the brains behind the experiment so if anybody knows what to do about this mess it should be them." Collette told us.  
  
"You two lead the way." I said to them.  
  
"Why us?" Barney asked raising an eyebrow.  
  
"You two have been through more training than me. I mean you did receive training right?"  
  
"Yes there is a Hazard Course where you learn the functions of your HEV suit and I'm sure there is one for security guards." Collette said.  
  
"That's right. You just happened to find a suit so you don't know all its abilities." Hadley commented as we began to move forward.  
  
We found a strange group of brown and green creatures standing around looking at one another. They must be talking to each other. However they spoke in a tongue I didn't understand.  
  
"What are those?" I whispered to my friends.  
  
"We called them slaves. They only act when there is a higher ranking soldier around them. However they are rather lethal. They can gather electricity and shoot it at its prey." Collette explained to us.  
  
"How should we take them down?" I asked. Collette and I were thinking and thinking when Barney tossed a grenade in the middle of their group. They obviously didn't know what hit the ground before them until it exploded killing all of them.  
  
"That could also work too." Collette said a little stunned that such a simple act worked so well.  
  
"In this kind of thing you have to blast your way out." Hadley said standing and walking over to the wall.  
  
"This tunnel is caved in too. I guess we can't go further." I said feeling like I was trapped down here.  
  
"Wait, this wall is been destroyed. Looks like we can go through this piping." Collette said softly with some fear in her voice.  
  
"It's extremely dark in there. And if we got attacked we wouldn't be able to defend ourselves as well." I said.  
  
"Well it's the only choice we have." Hadley brought up. He was first to turn his flashlight on and step into the sludge within the pipe.  
  
"This stuff sure stinks." Collette said pinching her nose.  
  
"That's what a helmet is for." I said walking in next turning on my flashlight.  
  
"Mine doesn't have one." She moaned doing the same as Barney and I.  
  
The three of us wandered through this pipe for several minutes and we had to fight back some headcrabs but we were in fine shape. Until this large rumbling shook the pipe open and we saw that we were several hundred feet up, with the canals below us.  
  
"That was close, but what the hell did that?" Hadley said as he looked down.  
  
"I have no idea. We can jump this gap though. I'll go first." Collette volunteered.  
  
She took a running start and jumped the gap to the other pipe. She made it look easy.  
  
"My turn." Hadley said jumping across. Now it was my turn. I was scared like you wouldn't believe.  
  
I went back to run and jump and as I did I hear something in my helmet. "Move in!"  
  
"Shit!" I yelled running as grunts began to pour into the pipe and fire at me. One bullet hit me in the leg and I happened to jump just short of the gap and fall. I fell and fell and fell for what seemed like an eternity. I watched the world fly past me as I dropped. Then my body hit the water below and the splash was immense.  
  
I was almost certain I had died this time. I cheated death twice before but now it seemed as I was gone for sure. Then I opened my eyes and began to struggle to the surface of the water. I was alive but my suit's power according to my Heads Up Display was at 3 percent. It had taken a lot out of it.  
  
I swam over to a ladder and climbed up it and was on solid ground. I looked up and couldn't see or hear anything from above. Hopefully Collette and Barney made it out of that okay.  
  
I went through the service door and came to a loading area. Inside was a radio device that I've seen some grunts use. A message was coming through.  
  
"We have lost track of Freeman! He has escaped into the Rocket Test Labs and we are currently being pinned down by these creatures! The other Hazard Suits are heading in separate directions. One is coming through the piping to Sector E and another heading for the Lambda Complex! The other we have lost sign off, he is presumed dead!" a soldier said over the radio.  
  
"Who the hell is Freeman?" I asked myself. "Doesn't matter, I need to find a way out of this place." I said to myself. A large storage elevator led upwards. It was my only option right now and I took it. 


	5. Theft

Disclaimer: I don't own Half-Life or its characters. I own Grey and any new creatures or weapons that may appear.  
  
Half-Life Integral  
  
Theft  
  
The elevator slowly moved upwards. I had begun to think about this whole incident. I never even imagined that I would have to go through something like this ever. It was scary and being alone in all of this was very scary to me. Before I had been with Roberts, Gina, Hadley, and Collette but now I was on my own for now.  
  
That soldier mentioned other Hazard Suits moving towards Sector E through piping and one going to the Lambda Complex. Collette must be the one in the piping and the other one could be Gina. If I was to make it through this alive I'd have to find a way over to the Lambda Complex.  
  
Another thing that made me happy was that the soldier reported another Hazard Suit presumed dead. Hopefully it was me if I put the facts together and I could use that to my advantage.  
  
The lift finally reached the top and I was inside a large storage area like I'd seen before. I heard all these moans and rumblings once I stepped into it. Something was down here in this place and it was probably what burst the pipes open.  
  
Going through the area I heard someone banging on one of the large containers yelling "Hello can anyone hear me!?"  
  
I knocked on some until the person asked who it was. "Is someone there?"  
  
I opened the lock on it and opened the large door. A scientist was in there and he looked happy to see me.  
  
"Oh thank god. I was afraid it was a soldier or worse. Who might you be?" the man asked. He wore a pair of glasses and had a small beard and a very intelligent sounding voice.  
  
"My name's Gray, who might you be?" I asked him lowering my weapon.  
  
"I'm Doctor Rosenberg. And I'm afraid I'm partially responsible for what happened here. I was one of the first scientists to develop the teleportation technology used in today's experiment." He explained to me.  
  
"Well do you know where the Lambda Complex is? I need to get there if I want escape." I told him.  
  
"The Lambda complex is quite a ways away from here. I'd advice against going. The military had taken over the surface and getting there will be hell. If you're interested I have another way to get out of the base. However I wouldn't know where to go from here. If you were to go with me then maybe we could find the place I am talking about. You are the most equipped person among us." Rosenberg explained.  
  
"Sure thing. Follow me." I told him readying my shotgun for anything ahead of us.  
  
We were able to leave the area and were outside in some kind of train yard by the looks of it.  
  
"Excellent we aren't far from the old test labs. It should be through here." Rosenberg said pointing to a door on the far side. However I heard something inside my helmet.  
  
"Sir, the other suit is here!"  
  
"Let's go!"  
  
The military must have picked me up again. But how? I couldn't fight them with Rosenberg in tow so I found a container like he was in before on told him to hide for the time being.  
  
"I'm sorry to leave you here again, but you'll be safe in here." I said locking it up tight. I'd let him out once I got rid of the troops.  
  
I took cover inside the track control station and soon troops were in the area and I fired upon them before they saw me. However there were about five of them against the one of me.  
  
Soon a grenade was heading towards me so I leapt through the window before it exploded. Firing shell after shell was tricky because I had less ammo than the soldiers.  
  
Another grenade was coming at me. Taking my weapon I held it by the barrel and hit the grenade right back at them like a baseball. Thank god that plan worked, because I suck at baseball.  
  
The soldier themselves were as surprised as me when the small orb landed at their feet. One of the grunts dove on top of it and it literally blew his body apart. Blood and organs sprayed across the area and his Mp5 landed near my feet. Picking it up I fired all that was left in it at the wounded soldiers and soon they were all dead.  
  
Picking up their ammo I had just enough for the Mp5. I was prepared to free Rosenberg when I heard something in the sky.  
  
It was a helicopter and it didn't look like it would be any help to me. It opened fire on me and I ran like hell through the building Rosenberg pointed out. I still heard it firing at me. It must be following me.  
  
Soon I made my way to an open window and a dead soldier by it. Someone has been through here. I made my way out the window and through a parking area with more dead marines. One of the big doors was open now and I ran through it.  
  
I was sorry to leave Rosenberg but I had no choice. Another large elevator was inside with a truck on it. I activated the lift and went down it. Then the truck began to make noise.  
  
About three troops came out from it and attacked me. I fought them off with difficulty from the small area but my health was low. About 46 from my Heads Up Display. Soon the lift reached the bottom area and even better. Aliens were waiting. About four slaves and one larger one I didn't know about.  
  
Taking cover inside the truck I found some supplies inside it. This small backpack with CAUTION written on a tag on it. It came with this small controller with this red button on it. Maybe I could use this somehow.  
  
Taking the controller I slide the backpack towards the group of slaves and they just walked up to it and examined it. They had no idea what it was. Then I hit the red button and they were all destroyed by the blast. The unknown one was left standing however. Arming the Mp5 I leapt out and fired.  
  
It fired this strange thing on its arm at me. Taking cover behind a crate in the area I felt I was safe. These hornets came around the corner and hit me imbedding themselves into my suit. Firing another few rounds out of my gun it fell back with a thud. My health was now at 34. Then I heard a door open above me.  
  
"Hello? Up here, quick!" a person said.  
  
Climbing a ladder nearby a scientist greeted me. He let me into a room and closed the door.  
  
"I'm sorry but I couldn't let you in until I was sure the area was cleared. However I'm afraid it's not any more pleasant here. There is this strange creature in the large test chamber and it has slaughtered all the personnel in the area. It is this large being made of plasma and it is near invincible." He told me.  
  
"How can you kill it?" I asked.  
  
"We do not know. We were studying its properties until everything went into chaos and didn't get far enough in the research to find out that information." He said.  
  
"Why don't we leave it there?" I asked.  
  
"That's another bit of bad news." Oh great. "There is a ventilation shaft inside the chamber but it is currently guarding it so no one has been able to get past it."  
  
"I'll try my hand. Better than staying here." I said. I didn't care anymore. I'd have to press on if I was to get to Gina at the Lambda complex.  
  
"But you look terrible. Hold still." He said taking out a needle and injecting something into the arm area of the suit. My health rose to 53. "There are some supplies in the next room so take what you can. I'll wait here in case someone else comes by." He told me.  
  
Once I went into the next room there were med kits and batteries around the place as well as ammunition. I was happy for that part. But then before leaving this room I heard a low growl and felt this strange feeling.  
  
I was hungry.  
  
"I can't fight this thing without food. Maybe one of these crates has some food inside." I said hacking one open with a crowbar.  
  
A small package fell out labeled "rations" I opened it up and inside was a small meal. It looked like some beef, a roll of bread, and a small cupcake. Not exactly the breakfast of champions but it would do.  
  
Removing my helmet I ate happily without interruption. Once finished I put my helmet back on. It actually felt nice to get that thing off. I'd been in this suit half the time here and it was a little discomforting at times but I owe it my life about seven or so times over, if you count the encounters with soldiers.  
  
Once ready I went through the door and the rumblings from before were occurring again. It must have been from that plasma being. Maybe that was what opened the piping that I fell through.  
  
Around the corner was a series of dead bodies from guards, scientists, and even aliens. This monster doesn't seem to take sides I guess.  
  
Then I went into the door marked "Test Chamber A" and inside was this large orb of blue liquid and a large red portal inside it. It was sprouting tendrils from its body and banging on the side of the chamber. It must be trying to find a way out. I was on the top floor of the chamber. There were two below me connected by ladders.  
  
On the opposite side was a large opening but it was blocked by debris. Then the creature moaned at me. It knew I was here. I fired the Mp5 at it but nothing happened. How could I hurt it?  
  
Then all the blue liquid around the red center split into two sections and formed walls on the floor I was on and they began to move towards me. It was trying to crush me! I scrambled to a ladder and slid down before it could crush me. Then I noticed the red center might be its weakness.  
  
I readied my gun and fired all I could into the portal like enter. Then the liquid formed over it again but the creature seemed hurt. I don't see how a scientist missed a weakness as obvious as that.  
  
Again the creature tried the same thing but I climbed up a level and barely missed getting my legs broken by it. I fired as much as I could into the portal again and this time the creature reformed and began to pulse violently. It began to glow brightly too. In a fit of rage it destroyed the debris around the opening. I ran down there and inside as fast as I could. Then I just stopped. Something had grabbed me from behind and began to pull on me.  
  
I kept trying to push forward but whatever had me was pulling my whole body off of itself it hurt so much. Then in one large flash I fell forward and on the ground. Looking back I saw my Hazard Suit being pulled into the large plasma being.  
  
I wanted my suit back but for now I had to run from this thing. It may explode by its reactions. Then a scientist was on the end of the tunnel I was in yelling to hurry inside. I dashed towards him and dove inside as the man closed it. A large explosion was heard and it appeared the plasma being was no more.  
  
"Oh thank god someone else made it. I had come here from the other side and hoped someone would make it past that thing. However it looks like we're both in bad shape." The man said to me.  
  
"It took my Hazard Suit. How?" I asked myself.  
  
"That is a strange creature but be thankful your Hazard Suit was all it got. You're lucky to be alive." He told me.  
  
"I guess." I said sounding sad. It felt odd losing that suit. I guess I got attached to having it.  
  
"Well there is a security guard around the corner. Have him escort you to where I came from. Hopefully you can find some other forms of protection there." The scientist told me.  
  
Once he mentioned protection I realized that not only was my suit stolen but all the weapons and ammo I had as well. Could it get any worse?  
  
"Hey kid." The guard said. "You'll need me if you don't have any weapons on you. The lab the doc was talking about isn't that far ahead. Come with me." He said walking forward, gun drawn.  
  
I guess I'll have to follow this guy until I can find a form of protection again. But why did the plasma being try to take my suit? Was it just trying to bring me with it when it died or what? 


	6. Home Free

Yeah, I know it seems like Metroid Prime or something, but it won't be completely identical.  
  
Home Free  
  
I walked along with the guard along the hallway. I was very depressed over losing my suit. Without that I would have died a long time ago. It was like a part of me almost and that part of me was gone now, destroyed with the monster that stole it.  
  
"What's wrong sport?" the guard asked me. Most of these guys seem to treat me like a kid.  
  
"I'm just depressed over losing my Hazard Suit." I told him.  
  
"We'll find you another one up ahead. Believer these scientist guys up ahead have packed away tons of shit down there. We'll find something." He assured me.  
  
"I hope so."  
  
We only seemed to encounter these "Houndeye" creatures that used shockwaves to attack us. Luckily Barney was able to dispatch of them with little injury.  
  
"Not only do I miss it. I miss having a gun. I can't do anything like this." I moped.  
  
"Just a little further. Oh great!" he said.  
  
Before us was a large door. Only it was completely mangled and smashed so it was impossible to open. Strange claw marks were present on it as well as a blue residue left on the door.  
  
"What the hell did this?" he asked me.  
  
"Be damned if I know. Is this the way in?" I asked.  
  
"It would have been the fastest way in, now we have to take the back way." He said to me sounding kinda like the back way wasn't pleasant, then again anywhere in Black Mesa wasn't pleasant.  
  
"Where does the back way go?"  
  
"It loops through some of the old rail tunnels. Then we gotta head through some old piping and we'll be inside." He told me. This was sounding familiar like when I was with Collette in that pipe.  
  
Well we climbed down a few service ladders and eventually made it to the old rail system but it was deserted practically. Up ahead were multiple dead marines and a few dead slaves. Someone had been through here.  
  
"Damn, that Freeman guy sure knows how to raise hell." Barney said to himself.  
  
"Who is this Freeman guy anyway?"  
  
"I heard he was the guy that was at ground zero. He was testing the experiment today and then this all happened. One of my buddies was saying he was heading to the Lambda Complex to help fix this mess."  
  
"I have to find a way to the Lambda Complex. My boss, as you may call it, is there."  
  
"Who's that?"  
  
"Gina Cross. I'm her intern." I told him.  
  
"That sure sucks."  
  
Eventually he found the piping he mentioned and we climbed inside. This time the smell was terrible and I missed my suits helmet now more than ever.  
  
Once through that disgusting sludge we were in this pumping station.  
  
"Almost there. I gotta enter my code." He said punching in some numbers on this small keypad attached to a guard station. Then the wall began to open behind him.  
  
We both went inside and soon guns were held up to us. As soon as they were raised they fell.  
  
"Oh it's just you! I thought the military was here." Another security guard said.  
  
"Got any stuff for my friend here." He asked everyone. They were more than happy to point me to the storage area.  
  
One of the scientists directed me to this armor vest and mask. It belonged to a marine but they took it off his body and fixed it. I was against wearing such a thing.  
  
"Why? You need protection especially if you're going to the Lambda Complex. This is better than going naked and you may be able to get the drop on soldier if you're disguised as one."  
  
Reluctantly I took the vest and slipped it over my head and it fit rather well on me. Then the scientist and I tied the gas mask on my head and a Heads Up Display appeared like on the Hazard Suit's. It felt kinda weird wearing this gear. I hated the military and now I'm dressed like one of these guys.  
  
With the PCV came weapons. The scientist let me take a pistol, a shotgun, an Mp5, and even a new weapon they developed. These small bottles with this bubbling liquid that looked like water. On the top of the bottle was this strange cap. If I turned it hard enough another liquid would be introduced to the other liquid and the reaction would cause a large explosion. However the bottles shatter easily so they would explode on contact or after 3 seconds if not impacting something.  
  
"They should come in handy. We named them Blast Caps for obvious reasons. Hopefully you have luck up there. Quickly follow me and I'll lead to the surface access tunnel." He said showing me to the tunnel.  
  
"I warn you! No one that went down this tunnel came back. However according to the map of the area there should be a large disused elevator at the end of the tunnel that should take you right to the surface. Good luck!" he said to me.  
  
I don't know why but I shook his hand just then. It was my way of wishing him luck too. Everyone needed it.  
  
I began my hike down this tunnel. It was very large and dark. However I was instructed how to use the PCV's nightvision goggles before leaving. It didn't help too much but it was an improvement.  
  
Soon I came to a large collection of the big aliens with the hornet launchers and I tossed a Blast Cap at them. Most of them exploded with it and the rest died at the power of my Mp5. I encountered some other creatures. These scientist but their bodies were all deformed with a mouth in their stomach and a headcrab attached to them. It was terrible but I soon downed these new guys with some shotgun shells.  
  
Then I found the elevator and it was up. Somebody must have taken it up but whom? I heard a large amount of aliens start coming from behind. I couldn't fight back all of these on my own.  
  
Then the elevator moved down and about five grunts were firing off at them. I almost fired at them myself but then I remembered they must have thought I was an actual grunt myself. I joined them and soon the aliens were all dead on the floor.  
  
"I was hoping to find a grunt down here! You find anything down here?" a black one with a headband said to me.  
  
It was weird. I was used to these guys shooting at me and staring down the barrels of their guns, and now they spoke to me as one of their own.  
  
"No sir!" I replied back.  
  
"Dammit! I was hoping to waste one of those guards or at least Freeman. He's a sly little bastard!" a soldier with a cigarette said in a raspy voice.  
  
"Squad quiet down! I got word over the radio! We have found a small group consisting of three scientists and a rouge security guard. They are in the old teleportation labs below. I suggest we go rescue them." The guy in the black beret said laughing at the word rescue.  
  
I followed them up on the lift and we were soon in the train yard I left Rosenberg in, only the car I left him in was moved to the opposite end. The dead marines I killed were still there as well as some new ones.  
  
"I heard that security guard came through here, and that bastard in the blue Hazard Suit too. He wasted some of my buddies." The guy said looking over to one of the dead bodies.  
  
I felt kinda sorry I had killed those guys from before. I had never actually looked at it from the military's side of things. We then went through the area I ran to when the helicopter attacked.  
  
We arrived at this broken wall with an elevator waiting for us. We all piled inside and went down a long way from the sound of it.  
  
Soon we heard a man's voice call out to someone. It was Rosenberg's, no mistaking that man's voice.  
  
"Good luck Mr. Calhoun! I'll see you on the other side!" and then we heard this great sound. We were near that room but the door was locked down tight.  
  
"Hutchins! Torch this door down!" the commander ordered the guy smoking.  
  
"Who needs a lock smith? He he" he said lighting his blowtorch with his cigarette and slowly torching through the door with it. We waited and eventually we heard the sound of something opening up, like a vacuum of some kind. Then we burst through the door.  
  
"Open fire!" and then everyone began shooting at the security guard above. I didn't however; I just stood there and let him pass by. He glanced at me and looked oddly at me wondering why I wasn't firing at him. Then he ran into a portal and as he did it went insane shooting green beams everywhere and soon another portal formed nearby the other one.  
  
I took my chances and ran head on right into this new portal.  
  
"Grunt! Get back here!" I heard the commander yell to me. I ignored him and leapt through.  
  
It was an odd sensation I felt then. My vision was blurry and then I was outside near this SUV and a fence with a scientist breaking down the gate.  
  
"Oh no a soldier came through after Calhoun!" I heard Rosenberg yell.  
  
"No. Rosenberg it's me Grey!" I shouted to him. My vision was still kinda green from before.  
  
He went up and looked me in the eyes and was assured it was me.  
  
"Oh thank god you managed to make it. Calhoun came through a moment ago and then he...oh no, it's happening to you too! Your body is caught in a resonance displacement and...."  
  
I vanished again. I was practically at the exit of this god forsaken place and then I ended up somewhere...around the Lambda Complex. Well at least I ended up where I originally intended.  
  
Soon more grunts came over to me and they wanted me to help kill this woman in a Hazard Suit nearby an entrance.  
  
I followed and saw Gina killing a few grunts and then taking cover from us.  
  
Then we all waited and I volunteered to go flush her out. What they didn't see was me activate a Blast Cap and set it near them. I ran towards Gina and began to remove the gas mask on my PCV.  
  
"Sir, you hear something?"  
  
"What the hell?" Before they knew what the strange bottle was it exploded in a shower of blood, guts, and PCV pieces.  
  
Gina aimed at me and even shot me in the chest with a shotgun with the double blast feature. It hurt but my charged PCV absorbed some of the damage I took.  
  
"Gray is that you!?" she said amazed.  
  
"Yes, thank god I found you!" I cried to her. Tears were actually forming in my eyes. After all the hardship and pain I finally found her. She was starting to cry herself and then she hugged me.  
  
I hugged her back and at that moment the whole Black Mesa incident didn't exist to me. It wasn't like I was in love with Dr. Cross it was just I was so relieved that she herself made it here alive and that she knew I was alive and well myself.  
  
"Hurry! We must get inside the Lambda Complex before more grunts come." She yelled signaling me to follow her into the large bunker. I put my mask on and followed her inside.  
  
More scientists were inside with weapons pointing right at me.  
  
"Dr. Cross behind you!" one yelled aiming a rifle at me.  
  
"Hold your fire! This is a friend. He's just dressed as a grunt. Look at the rest of him. Unlike grunts I wore a black t-shirt and greenish jeans under the PCV instead of the white and black and green. Plus I didn't have the big sixty pound backpack.  
  
"Oh thank god! We were afraid we'd been found out."  
  
"Gray welcome to the Lambda Complex. I'm so glad you made it here alive. When I heard another Hazard Suit made it here with me I thought it was you but it was only my colleague Collette Green. You should meet her."  
  
Collette walked over to us holding a rocket launcher. Damn, I missed out on some big guns after losing her.  
  
"Gray? How'd you survive?" she said shocked.  
  
They were all interested in how I made it here alive.  
  
I told them after falling from the large pipe leaving behind Collette and Hadley, who didn't make it, that I made my way underground to this plasma creature and it stole my suit right off my body after I killed it. Then some other science personnel gave me a PCV they found and some weapons. Then I followed a military squad to this old lab where this guard teleported away with Dr. Rosenberg. But my body was in this resonance displacement and then I ended up near here.  
  
It was certainly more horrific than what I had described it as. But we had other problems to deal with.  
  
"Let me explain our situation. A few hours ago Gordon Freeman had launched our satellite into space and with it we can carry out our plans to fix this disaster. However the military is still persistent to stop it. The fools! They recalibrated our alignment equipment in a bordering complex and we need it properly calibrated in order to set up an uplink. With it we can send Mr. Freeman to the alien world in hopes of stopping all this." One of the scientists told me.  
  
"I'll help any way I can." I told him.  
  
"I thought you just wanted to leave Gray?" Gina asked.  
  
"Well ever since we parted and I've been alone made me realize that everyone here is suffering and dying every second here. I'm sick of all this pain and suffering and if Gordon Freeman can put a stop this nonsense then I'll gladly do anything in my power to help him achieve that goal!" I protested. I had actually meant that. I was surer of this than any other choice I had to make.  
  
"However we have lost contact with Mr. Freeman's Hazard Suit a few minutes ago. But he is very close to the Lambda Complex and I'm certain he'll improve his speed to get here tenfold." A different scientist told me.  
  
"Collette and I were going to head down to the satellite controls and fix everything you can come along if you want to." Gina told me. I was ready to go once I had used the HEV charger in the corner of the room to fully charge my PCV. It was no Hazard Suit but it would keep my ass alive for this.  
  
The three of us took an old train to the control complex. However we felt something strange going through the tunnel. This was far from over for me. 


	7. Black Dawn

Half-Life Integral  
  
Black Dawn  
  
The train the three of us rode was moving faster than the regular transit system trains did. I wanted to get this over with so we could return to a normal life. However the train suddenly started to move a lot slower.  
  
"Gina what's happening? Why are you slowing down?" Collette asked while she was doing something to my PCV.  
  
"It's not me. Something must be drawing power from the tracks." Gina informed her colleague.  
  
"Warning! Power failure detected on Track Levels A, B, D, and F!" The announcement voice said.  
  
"All done Gray!" Collette said stepping away from me.  
  
"What were you doing anyway?" I asked. I had to speak louder to them because the gas mask I wore muffled my voice slightly.  
  
"I installed a communication device into your vest and helmet. It's tuned to our frequency so the three of us will be in contact with one another." She told me as the train car stopped completely overlooking a ruined warehouse of boxes and overturned crates. In the center of the area was a train similar to this one with a series of dead bodies lying by it. Poor bastards.  
  
"I guess the military must be behind this." Collette suggested as a large explosion was heard around and suddenly the train began to dart forward faster than before. I was flung off of it and into the area below. Once again I was separated from Gina and Collette.  
  
This area seemed deserted from the looks of things. Then I heard something behind me. I turned and nothing was there. Then I found myself face down on the ground with a pistol aimed at the back of my head.  
  
I thought I was going to die right there, but who would do this? The military thought I was on their side and a security guard...crap it must have been a security guard. The person soon wrapped my arm around my back putting me in great pain. However while they did it I felt something else brush against me.  
  
"A woman!?" I shouted as whoever it was turned me over to face her. It was a woman alright. She wore this black skin tight uniform with a series of equipment on it and some guns with her and a pair of infared goggles on her forehead. He eyes were the only visible part of her body.  
  
Why was she dressed differently than grunts? And when were women used for this kind of stuff?  
  
"Who are you?" I asked her. She pointed the gun further into my face after asking.  
  
"Aren't we on the same side?" I asked her. She didn't talk at all to me. However I noticed her grip wasn't that strong as I expected so I pushed her off my body and now I had my mp5 aimed at her and my knees on her arms so she couldn't move.  
  
"Who are you?" I asked her again. "Let's just put our guns away for now. It looks like we're both stuck down here and if we want to live through all this we need to put our fighting aside!" I told her slowly getting up.  
  
She put her gun away as I put my mp5 away behind me. "Who are you anyway?" I asked.  
  
"Would you stop asking me that!?" she screamed at me.  
  
"Sorry, I'm just curious." I told her.  
  
"None of your business Corporal Tucker." She spat at me. I looked at the tag on my PCV and it belonged to a man by the name of Corporal Daniel Tucker. I looked at her uniform and it had a similar tag.  
  
"Private First Class, Alice Miller?" I said.  
  
"Who gave you permission to read my uniform tag?" she shouted again. This girl was worse than the military itself.  
  
"I just want to get along with you okay. And I'm not Corporal Tucker." I took off the gas mask and revealed my face to her. "My name is Gray I'm just wearing a PCV."  
  
She seemed reluctant but soon she took the mask off her face and she had short brown hair that flowed slightly but not too much, like it was growing back. She did have a girls face though, no hiding that.  
  
"I hate to ask again but why are you dressed differently than other grunts?" I asked her expecting her to yell at me again.  
  
"I'm part of the Black Ops. I've been assigned to kill everyone here." She told me.  
  
"Man this whole thing is way too confusing. First aliens try to kill me, and then the military tries to kill me, now another military squad is gonna kill us." I moaned to myself.  
  
"By everyone I meant grunts too." She said.  
  
"That's even worse! Who is ordering all of this?"  
  
"I can't tell you that."  
  
"Well it wouldn't make a difference anyway now that I think about it."  
  
"What do you plan to do now Gray?" she asked.  
  
"I need to find the satellite controls to fix the satellite calibration. It was shut down." I told her.  
  
"I know. We did that!" she told me.  
  
"We? There's only one of you here." I told her.  
  
"I was separated from my squad."  
  
"Sorry, I know how it feels." I told her walking over to her.  
  
"Don't bother making me feel better. I was trained to hide emotions."  
  
I got my mask back on and she did the same. Then we felt this large rumble and the lights turned out.  
  
"What the hell?" I shouted.  
  
"Quiet!" she hushed me. I figured out how to operate my nightvision goggles and the area gained this large green tint. I could make out Alice by this crate and she had those goggles of hers on too so I ran over to her.  
  
"My squad must be coming." She said to herself. "They will kill you if they find you."  
  
"They can try." Then I felt the floor shake slightly. "Something here." I said in a whisper.  
  
Looking up I saw this gigantic beast before us. It didn't see us as it was turned in another direction. It was very large and plated with strange arms and this eye in the center of its chest practically.  
  
"Just great." I whispered to myself.  
  
Soon Alice looked up and saw the giant herself. "Where to go?"  
  
"You don't expect to fight that thing I hope." I told her.  
  
We waited for a moment and then a small door was blasted open and these men in black military clothes burst through the room and fired at both the giant and us.  
  
"Hold your fire!" she shouted.  
  
"Alice Miller, we have orders to see you eliminated! Traitor!" One of them said firing his rifle at both of us. I made a run for it and dragged Alice with me firing my mp5 at them.  
  
Most were killed by the gargantuan beast behind us and we ducked into the small door blasted open and were safe for the moment.  
  
"Well that guy is too big to fit in here. Lucky for us." I said switching off my goggles.  
  
"Why did they fire at me?" she said to herself dropping to her knees.  
  
"No time to worry about things now!" I told her attempting to pull her to her feet.  
  
"I see now. It's a fight for survival for me I suppose." She was still speaking with herself.  
  
"Alice! We gotta get out of here! Who knows if more Black Ops will show up?" I shouted.  
  
"Fine! I'll help you out Gray! But you must follow my orders when we move, understood?" she said sounding like a fierce drill instructor.  
  
I felt like yelling at her about this being no time to play "army", but then the bigger picture came to mind. She's a well trained soldier so she must know the best judgment right now. I agreed to her demands.  
  
"What's the first order captain?" I asked her.  
  
"First order is to not call me captain! Follow me!" she said running off with her pistol drawn. It was like a security guards sidearm but with a suppressor on the end of the barrel.  
  
"Can you tell me more about these Black Ops?" I asked her.  
  
"Now that I'm a traitor I don't see the difference it would make if I didn't. Fine. A few hours ago we got word that the grunts, the first wave of troops, were unable to find Gordon Freeman and carry out the mission. We are better trained than the grunts and were brought here with three objectives."  
  
"And what were those objectives?" I asked.  
  
"First, eliminate Gordon Freeman. We have word he is responsible for what happened here. Second, eliminate Adrian Shepard."  
  
"Who's that?"  
  
"He's a grunt like the rest but he's taken out at least a few dozen Black Ops and alien creatures. He's just as hard to kill as Freeman." She told me.  
  
"What's the final objective?"  
  
"Destroy Black Mesa." She said soundly.  
  
"Destroy this whole place?"  
  
"We have a nuclear device being planted as we speak. However we don't plan to blow the base for a few more hours." She told me.  
  
"This is terrible!" I said as we were interrupted by gunfire.  
  
"What the hell?" I said taking cover behind a crate in the corridor. "Why couldn't I hear them over my radio?"  
  
"Black Ops use a remote frequency so only they can hear it." Alice said firing a few shots at them.  
  
I used one of my remaining three Blast Caps and it seemed the room was cleared.  
  
"Those are potent things." She said looking at one.  
  
"I know. Where are we?" I said looking at the walls. "Advanced Weapons Research?"  
  
We entered another room and were met with some resistance by scientists.  
  
"Stay back!" one with glasses said.  
  
"We aren't going to hurt you!" I told him putting my weapons away.  
  
Alice soon did the same. After some explanation we learned what was happening here.  
  
"Those Black Ops have been storming the whole area and leaving nothing. However they don't know what we have here." He said leading me to this room.  
  
"Here we have a very powerful weapon. I trust you should be able to put it to good use." He said revealing this very futuristic looking rifle.  
  
"What the hell is this thing?" I said lifting it and holding it by the handle. It looked like a normal assault rifle almost but with a blue casing and energy cells and batteries attached to its sides. It was quite heavy to hold though.  
  
"This is one of our first experimental weapons. It was the prototype for the Gluon Gun designed by Lambda Sector. However this weapon has one major flaw. It has a fast fire rate and does tremendous damage but if fired for long periods of time it will overheat and explode. The Gluon Gun's backpack unit was designed for cooling the weapon down.  
  
"I'll be careful with it." I said arming it.  
  
"It used batteries like this one." The man held up this small box with circuits on the top end of it. "Each battery holds around a charge of 50 cells."  
  
"Thanks. But you won't have anything to protect you down here though." I told him.  
  
"Not to worry. I plan to activate the auto defense turrets in this area after you leave. They should keep me safe from the Black Ops. You should leave the back way." He said leading Alice and I further into this lab of weapons and equipment.  
  
He pulled this old board out of the way and it led to a dark hallway.  
  
"This was one of the old tunnels boarded up in the construction. You should be able to make your way to the surface of the Lambda Complex from this path."  
  
"Thanks for your help." Alice said thankfully.  
  
"Yeah, good luck to you." I said going first.  
  
We heard somebody talking in the distance.  
  
"That Shepard guy is sure killing us off quickly." Someone said.  
  
"Tell me about it. I heard he's getting close to the 'package' too."  
  
"Well sooner or later he'll be taken care of. Either by us or that Government Man." He said chuckling to himself.  
  
I readied this Pulse Rifle as I called it and aimed and fired at them. It fired these blue rounds of energy right on target and practically evaporated one of them. Alice happened to move behind the other and slit his throat.  
  
"Ouch! This thing gets hotter than I thought." My Heads Up Display told me I used about 23 cells and it was almost burning my hands. Powerful but deadly to me as well.  
  
"We do make a good team, I'll give you that kid." Alice said moving forward.  
  
We kept moving forwards and eventually stopped at this large door. It was broken down and had this blue residue on it.  
  
"What the hell? I've seen this stuff before." I said to her.  
  
Then this blue beam shot out at us but narrowly missed hitting us. It exploded on the wall.  
  
"Shit! Run!" She yelled speeding forward more along the hallway.  
  
I didn't know what attacked us but it had to be an alien. We kept running until we found the elevator the scientist was talking about. Alice however kept running.  
  
"Alice! The elevator's here! Get on!" I told her.  
  
"I'll lead it down this way! It won't hurt you!" she shouted.  
  
"Alice!" the elevator was already moving. "Don't be stupid!"  
  
"Look. I know you're probably helping to fix this mess so go help already! I'm helping my own way! We'll meet up again don't worry!" she said vanishing into the darkness as another blue beam was sent in her direction.  
  
I didn't know if it hit her or not but I had to assume the best. I was out of the tunnel soon and on the surface near the satellite area of the Lambda Complex.  
  
"Alice!" I shouted at the top of my lungs. She was helpful and young too. She barely looked over twenty. "God Damn this all this Hell!" I screamed so loud. I didn't care if Black Ops or anything heard me. Soon I heard gunfire in the distance. Putting the issue on hold I did my best to stand and go to the source.  
  
Black Ops were firing at something. Throwing a Blast Cap in their direction they either exploded into a shower of blood or were wounded. I used my mp5 to finish the rest of them.  
  
I went over and their guns were different from the grunts. They looked like M16's almost. They also had a grenade launcher attached to the underside past the magazine. I picked them up and all the rest of the ammo they had.  
  
"Gray! Thank god!" I heard Gina yell.  
  
"Gina, I'm glad its you. How's it coming with the controls?" I asked getting to the point.  
  
"Collette is handling it. I'm going in to check on her right now." She said running into a bunker as the door closed.  
  
Now I was left here alone...or so I believed.  
  
Next, a far door exploded behind me and when I turned around I couldn't believe what was standing there looking at me.  
  
It was my blue Hazard Suit. It looked much larger and thicker and the hands were claws now.  
  
"What the hell are you?" I shouted to it aiming my rifle.  
  
"You!" It said with malice in its voice.  
  
"What the hell!?"  
  
"I've been looking for you!" It said in a soft voice.  
  
"Aren't you that plasma beast?"  
  
"I still am. I've been looking for you ever since I took on this miserable form! I recall very well you killing my previous form and I latched onto you to try to steal you."  
  
"Steal me? You weren't after the suit?"  
  
"No! My nature is to take over organisms to survive. When you killed my last host I had to find a new one quickly. It was difficult to use you as the new one but if I did not find one soon I would have perished. I had to settle for this suit of yours!"  
  
"So why are you looking for me?"  
  
"I want your body as my new host vessel! The human being is very intriguing to me and I wish to inhabit one!" it said as a blue beam firing from its body right at me. I had little time to avoid it.  
  
"And I'm taking it from you if I have to!"  
  
I ran from it firing the M16 at it. The bullets didn't seem to harm it at all. It must have augmented the Hazard Suits systems when it bonded to it.  
  
I had to stop this thing now! I took my last Blast Cap and tossed it at him. The explosion knocked it backward a little but it didn't even look like he felt it.  
  
"Gina can you hear me?" I said into my mask.  
  
"What's wrong Gray?" she said with concern.  
  
"Something's attacking me! Need help!"  
  
"Be right there! Hold on!"  
  
I looked around and noticed this tank that was parked right next to the bunker Gina went into.  
  
"Gina I have a plan! There's a tank in the yard here. When you get to me go to it and fire when he's in your sights!"  
  
"Got it! Hang on!"  
  
The beams this thing fired were very accurate. Half of it was because it showed no sign that it was about to fire off one.  
  
"Gray I'm in position! What the hell is that?" she said to me.  
  
"My Hazard Suit!" I told her.  
  
I rolled into the line of fire of the tank and the suit had its back to it. I ran up to it and hit it with the stock of the rifle. It then clawed me backwards which hurt tremendously.  
  
"Gina now!" I shouted as the tank fired its main artillery cannon and the massive shell struck the suit head on and the massive explosion sent me flying into the wall.  
  
"Gray! Gray!" I heard her yell.  
  
Soon my body was being shaken.  
  
"Ouch. That son of a bitch hurts like crazy." I said to her as I stood up slowly.  
  
My PCV was totally destroyed and the gas mask was torn up in the front. I removed it as it served no more purpose to carry.  
  
"Look." I said to her.  
  
A large puddle of this blue liquid was on the ground and a portal was over it. And in front was somehow my Hazard Suit.  
  
"Take it Gray." She told me. I walked slowly up to the suit and moved it over to Gina.  
  
"I'll help you in." she said helping me into the suit. I had thought it was still over the control of the plasma creature but this phrase reassured me otherwise.  
  
"Welcome to the HEV Mark 4. Protective Systems. For use in Hazardous Environment Conditions."  
  
"I'm back!" I said to her proud. My old suit was on my body once again. Picking up all my weapons I stored them and the ammo I had as I heard something overhead.  
  
"Air strike!" Gina cried out.  
  
"Where do we hide?" I asked panicked.  
  
"There!" She pointed to the portal.  
  
"We don't know what it'll do!"  
  
"There's no time!" she said running through it.  
  
I followed as I saw planes overhead drop explosives nearby.  
  
Everything went green and then darkness...all darkness.  
  
"iiiiiiii willlll kkkillllll youuuuuu" a strange voice echoed through my head. I couldn't open my eyes to find out just where the hell I had ended up. 


	8. Border Crossing

Half-Life Integral  
  
Border Crossing  
  
"Just where in God's name am I?" I said opening my eyes and staring out at the endless abyss before me. The sky, it wasn't there. It was all some kind of bluish shade all around me. The area where I stood was suspended in midair and had a rocky texture.  
  
"Where am I?" I repeated to myself. Gina was nowhere in sight. I was saved from the air strike but now I'm somewhere else.  
  
I began to walk forwards and noticed my steps were lighter than before. As I edged to the end of the platform I was on I saw a similar one further ahead. It would be a long jump so I put away my rifle and ran and leapt.  
  
Much to my surprise I leapt far enough that I landed beyond what I expected to. The gravity in this place must be lighter so jumping could be easier for me. Taking out my rifle I looked around. Some kind of manta ray flew ahead and then one of those alien grunts with those hive hands appeared.  
  
Taking aim with my M16 I opened fire and downed it without emptying my whole magazine but I soon exchanged for a fresh one.  
  
"Am I in the alien home world?" I asked myself. This place was getting stranger as I continued on jumping. I soon was at this large structure and entered this small passage.  
  
Inside was even stranger than before. The walls were very bright and tons of strange life forms were everywhere around me. Inside this structure was a hole leading down further into this place. I thought over what to do now.  
  
"What am I even supposed to do here? I don't even know why I'm here. Perhaps if I continued through here I might be able to find a way back to Earth." I told myself before taking the plunge.  
  
I landed in some red liquid. It was like water but just a different color. I hate this place. The water flowed down a long tunnel and these creatures were attached to the ceiling with these tongues hanging out of them. I shot all of them with my shotgun and all the organs they ate were coughed up as they died.  
  
"This place is nasty." I said wadding through the water and into a large pond with these brown colored monsters with odd tentacles on their heads drinking from the water. They paid little attention to me as I moved out of the water and further up through a passageway.  
  
"I really hate this place. Now I'm in another of these rooms!" I shouted as I was in a room like the one I dropped into from before and in the center was this odd looking device. It looked like a piece of technology.  
  
"This must be human! I guess that humans came here before and maybe they set this up for something." I said. Pushing the activation button nothing happened. I looked and it had no power and no energy source.  
  
Now in addition to the passage I took to get here I saw two more. I took the one on the left. Now I was "outside" and saw something across a series of platforms suspended in the air. It looked like a large yellow crystal. I jumped across the first gap and was ready to do the second but then that manta ray came back and now these alien slaves, about three, were ready to attack me.  
  
Lobbing a grenade at them I destroyed one but the others hit me with their electricity. Using my rifle I blasted the remaining two before they hit again.  
  
I jumped across three more gaps and stopped at this odd pool of strange blue water. It had sparkles coming from it. I stepped into it and this chanting filled my ears as my health display showed an increase in my vitality and it continued to increase until at 100 units. This kind of water must heal injury.  
  
Jumping over to the yellow crystal it was attached to a series of machines and with a control panel. I operated the panel and the crystal began to glow brightly as a cable that was outstretched over the chasm back to the central machine was seething with power.  
  
"Step one complete." I said to myself jumping back to the central machine. It was humming slightly. It still needs power.  
  
Going down the other path I saw a green portal like the one I jumped into almost and decided to head into it.  
  
I was now in some water and began to swim to the top of it. The ground was too high to climb out of except for across from where I was so I swam down in the direction. Then I heard a beastly roar and turned around. Under the surface I saw this brown demonic fish creature heading for me. I panicked and began to swim faster but it was catching up to me.  
  
Drawing the Pulse Rifle I aimed and fired bursts at it almost overheating my weapon but evaporating the creature. I climbed out as two more fish like that took its place.  
  
"I'd better stay out of the water if I can." I said putting away the rifle as it was burning my hands holding it. I walked along the shoreline and up to a passage from where I was dropped overlooking the big pool of water.  
  
In this other area was more water and pieces of equipment. I ran over a natural bridge and activated the panel on one but then noticed there were more components. I ran down following the cables and came into yet another area with water.  
  
I activated one and then the other piece in this room fell into the water at that moment. And to make it worse those fish swam into the area with me. The water was all connected.  
  
I looked to see where the machine landed down there and dove in following the cable. None of my guns worked underwater except the pistol I had so I fired like hell at the things. One bit me and it hurt so much my blood came through the suit and then I thought I died as I saw the machine below me. Reaching, I hit the switch and it turned on sending power upwards.  
  
My oxygen level was now low and I frantically swam upwards and practically jumped out of the water and almost even got dragged under from the fish again.  
  
"Administering morphine...morphine administered!" the suit told me making my pain go away.  
  
The machines were all activated and now one of the machines exploded from a power surge that a wall was opened for me into some kind of cave. A man in a similar hazard suit was dead on the ground with supplies near his corpse.  
  
I used his portable med kits to heal my wounds and picked up the guns he carried. Now a healing pool was near him. The guy must have tried to reach it before dying. I stepped into it and felt the aura recharge my whole body. Now I saw a big whole going down and dropped down and ended up back at the central area again. How strange.  
  
The equipment now had power and the energy source needed so I activated the machine and a portal opened before me. I gripped my rifle tightly and walked through it.  
  
I was ready for anything here. (Sorry this was so short, but it would be a short level. Hopefully the next one will make up for it.) 


	9. Elite

Half-Life Integral  
  
Elite  
  
I had no idea where this portal could lead me too. I was in some kind of room now with two dead people wearing hazard suits lying before me. I took their weapons and ammo and now my health was at 100 and my suit power was at 65 percent. I was in good shape for anything ahead.  
  
An open door was before me and my only way forward.  
  
Stepping through a large rock sealed the way I had just come. I was now in this large arena by the looks of things. Tons of dead bodies all around. Both human and alien.  
  
Getting my rifle ready I knew something would attack at me. Then I saw something horrific.  
  
It was a behemoth of a monster. Had the physical build of the alien grunts but much taller and had an addition pair of arms attached to their waist. On the left hand was nothing but the right contained this strange cannon of some kind. It wore thick plated armor and didn't look happy to see me. It flexed its muscles and scared me.  
  
It aimed it cannon arm and fired this blue beam at me. I dodged it. I didn't want to know what it would do to me. I fired my rifle and noticed my ammo was running very low. Once out I ditched the rifle and went to the Mp5 and fired that thing. Still nothing.  
  
This time though the blue beam hit me. My body began to move incredibly fast. I was standing still but I began to breathe very rapidly, move rapidly, and even think rapidly. It wasn't harming me but it can't be good. I knew I'd be hurt in a second if I didn't do something.  
  
I got on my knees into a crouch and then the beam stopped. The creature looked around for me. It didn't look like it saw me. Meanwhile my body began to move at its normal pace. That cannon accelerated my entire body exponentially! But why did it stop firing?  
  
"Stealth mode engaged!" the suit's automated voice sounded.  
  
When I crouched I must have activated this stealth mode. Perhaps it tracks me by sound and stealth mode must make me soundless to an extent. I began to move in this crouch position and it still didn't see me.  
  
Now I had a difficult choice. If I stayed this way it wouldn't see me but I wouldn't be able to do anything. If I fired it would most likely hear me and fire again. I had two of those satchels left from before so I decided to slide them both under it and then detonated them. The creature fell to the ground with a loud thud and then I began to fire at it once more with my Mp5 and it seemed to feel it this time around.  
  
I noticed that the explosion caused his armor to shatter and now his exposed skin was vulnerable. My Mp5 was now out of ammo itself. I didn't throw this gun away though and then I changed to the shotgun. I was only able to fire two shells at it before it stood up and looked very enraged.  
  
It knew where I was so I rolled out of the way and landed in a crouch again. This time though it just began to fire randomly. Now I had no more explosives to throw at it so I was out of options. I had to take it down and fast. I took out my Pulse Rifle and looked at the ammunition. I had one full battery loaded and two spare batteries.  
  
I noticed something I had not noticed before on the gun. Below the primary trigger was a secondary one. I decided to aim at it and fire with this new trigger. It used 25 cells and fired this large blue orb that exploded in a shower of blue light upon hitting the big creature. It fired at me as I changed batteries and I felt that acceleration from before.  
  
I used the primary firing and it was now a battle against who died first. I kept shooting it in the chest rapidly and the gun was now about to explode on me when it stopped firing and I just tossed the Pulse Rifle out of my hands.  
  
The creature began to nurse its cannon arm as it fell off completely. Now it fell to the ground and began to bleed to death. I had killed it. I walked over to my Pulse Rifle and picked it back up. It was still very much hot but I could handle it. Then I walked over to the cannon arm left behind. It was some kind of biological weapon of some kind.  
  
I hoisted it over my shoulder and it somehow bonded to my body. It was heavy but I was able to lift it successfully. I guess this was my new weapon.  
  
The ammunition display had a symbol that I have never seen before and it didn't list a number but instead a bar. I tested it out and fired it at the ground. The bar depleted but then began to recharge itself slowly. It seems to generate its own ammunition.  
  
"Where do I go now?" I wondered out loud. Then the body of this creature, which I called an Elite, exploded and a large hole in the ground was left in its place.  
  
I dropped into this hole and looked at the horrors before me.  
  
It was some kind of factory. Tons of cylinders were everywhere and slaves were moving them onto conveyer belts. This was an amazing find. It looks like the aliens seem to have had an army prepared for something. Was it prepared to attack us? I doubted that reason, what happened at Black Mesa was an accident.  
  
Moving along the catwalk I was on nothing noticed me. Then I heard another gunshot and looked below. It was a man. He had no helmet on his hazard suit and was blasting the aliens apart. He had brown hair and this brown goatee from the looks of it.  
  
I had the feeling I had seen him from somewhere before. I know! I had spotted him in this office area through the vents when this whole mess began.  
  
He looked upwards as if surveying the area and noticed me. He blinked quickly and then began to walk away. He must think he's seeing things. I mean I thought I was at first when I saw him in this world. But who is he? Is that Gordon Freeman? If it was then he was here to do something to save everything from these aliens.  
  
Well this catwalk led to a large room and I saw yet another dead body wearing a hazard suit. I had been checking them all since I got here. I wanted to know if it was Gina or not. But none of them were. Where did she end up?  
  
I had scavenged the area for all the supplies I could make use of and saw this blue chamber. I stepped into it and it gave off the same aura as healing pools did. But I had no use for it as I was at full health. Now there was this small opening in the wall I barely was able to crawl through. I crawled through this tight area and ended up further in this manufacturing plant.  
  
A large portal opened in the center of the room and then I looked skyward. These floating creatures with large heads began to throw these yellow balls at me so I did not want to stay and fight them all. I ran and leapt into the portal.  
  
"Tttoooooooo clooooooseeee. Grrraaaaaaaayyyyyyyyy toooooooooo clooooose"  
  
It was that same freaky voice I had hurt the first time since I had arrived here. It was calling out to me. I began to think I was going crazy from all this stress in this other world. But I knew deep down that it was someone or something communicating with me.  
  
I was in this large room now that led into yet another room. In this second room was a large platform. On this platform was a portal. I had no other options and jumped into it. 


	10. The Nebula

Disclaimer: I don't own Half-Life and stuff related to it blah blah blah.  
  
Half-Life Integral  
  
The Nebula  
  
I exited the familiar sensation of being transported somewhere and was still in the alien world. Platforms floating aimlessly in the "sky" around me. I looked down and noticed another portal down there. I began to jump down each platform to reach this portal.  
  
Once I was on the bottom an alien grunt appeared behind me. I armed that gun I got from the Elite and fired with the first trigger point I noticed. The grunt began to move faster and faster and then eventually exploded from the inside. This weapon seems to accelerate the motion of whatever it hits and accelerates the particles inside the thing until it combusts. I noticed two trigger points on this weapon and decided to use the second one later. Though I really hoped there wouldn't be a later.  
  
Jumping into this portal I noticed I was still in the alien world, but then I wasn't. This place surely made me stop dead and just stare in amazement.  
  
"What the hell?"  
  
It had the sky of the alien world and the ground and floating platforms of it but it also led into areas that looked like Black Mesa. Wherever I was it was sure freaky. I must be between worlds by the look of things.  
  
I moved into the Black Mesa area and was immediately attacked by three houndeyes. I used the second trigger point on the Accelerator, what I called it, and a green beam fired this time and I made sure to hit all three of them until the gun ran out of power.  
  
This time it did the opposite. The three creatures had been slowed down instead of sped up. They were trying to attack me like they would usually do but were moving so slowly it would take them at least 10 minutes to even begin to screech at me. I entered a door and was now in a test chamber but the walls were removed and I could see the alien sky above me.  
  
More attackers appeared but I swapped for my shotgun this time. I blasted all of them but lost a little health and power as well as ammunition. This chamber was very strange. It had this large device in the center and this wrecked device in front of it. It seemed like it was used for experiments.  
  
I had no time to worry about that. I exited through a hole in the floor and crawled through...alien rocks? This place defied all logic.  
  
After crawling through I was out on an alien platform with no sign of Earth technology. It was a straight path and I actually looked below me. There was a platform directly below the one I was on but I couldn't reach it from here. I decided to just keep walking forward. I entered this cave and ended up in yet another Black Mesa area.  
  
Dead scientists and security officers were strewn everywhere. It was a horrifying room. I stepped through carefully and it felt like nothing else would attack me. I walked through the door and was now in a completely Earth area.  
  
There were dead grunts and black ops lying dead on the ground. I quickly grabbed all the ammunition that they had on them. I also picked up another of those M16's that I left behind when fighting the Elite. I was well stocked in both Mp5 and M16 ammo. I kept going down this hallway and opened the door at the end.  
  
It was an elevator. I stepped into it and it went down. I was half expecting it to break and kill me but I had no other choice.  
  
Once the door opened I was back in the alien world but now I saw dead bodies of the aliens this time. Where other humans here? This was making very little sense. I wanted to leave here fast, my brain was starting to go crazy from the lack of logic in this place.  
  
Now there was this strange looking pad on the ground. It was a light color and looked useful somehow.  
  
I stepped onto it and was vaulted into the air and into a portal above me.  
  
"Feeeeeeeaaaarrrrrrr uuuuuuuusssssssss"  
  
It was that voice again. But what was it telling me, and why? Fear who? Something tells me that I was about to fight a creature like nothing I had ever seen before.  
  
This place was completely black and there was a large red portal near this spiked tower. I readied my Accelerator and breathed in and jumped.  
  
The only thing I could hear then was the sound of my own heavy breathing. Where was I going? 


	11. Omega

Thanks for all the reviews, and I'm sorry I haven't been too descriptive but this is the last chapter (aaawwwwww) I will try to make it as good as possible. On with the show. And tell me what you think of the ending.  
  
Half-Life Integral  
  
Omega  
  
The feeling of being transported from one place to another was a thing I could never become used to. This new place I ended up in was a large cylindrical room with four platforms around it with strange looking weapons attached to the ends of catwalks. I think I was still in Earth and this Xen world.  
  
Then I noticed the most hideous creature I had encountered thus far. It was a massive creature with a giant mouth and two beady red eyes and it looked very angry at me. I looked down from where I was and the floor was several hundred miles below me, or at least from what I could make out. This creature was a giant. It wasted no time in materializing five blue orbs and sending them at me. I fired the Accelerator at him but nothing happened.  
  
Then I got an obvious idea, use the weapon on the end of the platform. I took aim of the cannon and it fired this blue beam that pierced the right eye with careful aim and it closed it in pain. I then turned to the left eye and fired another burst at it. Once he closed that eye his mouth opened and this large yellow crystal was inside it.  
  
Taking aim I fired around five bursts of this beam weapon at the crystal and it cracked a little bit. Then I noticed the creature become violent and it lifted one of its massive muscular arms and swiped at the platform. I rolled out of the way and jumped to the similar platform next to me. The one I had been standing on fell and crumbled on the ground down below.  
  
I repeated the process of firing the beams at its eyes and then the crystal and I was on the final platform and was about to his the crystal again.  
  
I fired and it shattered. I was filled with a little hope just then. I thought with the crystal destroyed it would die and this guy seemed to be the last one I had to deal with.  
  
It roared for what seemed like an eternity and then it stared at me which made me jump a little and almost out of my suit and skin by its sudden gaze. Then it opened its mouth and inhaled. Its massive breathing was actually moving me. I held onto the ground for as long as I could but then I flew right into its mouth and down a large tunnel.  
  
It had swallowed me! I continued to fall and then finally ended up in some liquid that began to burn through my suit.  
  
"Warning, Hazardous radiation levels detected!" the suit's voice told me. I must be inside the stomach I said finding a place that wasn't covered in this acid.  
  
"How am I gonna get out of this one?" I asked myself seeing chunks of food fall from the ceiling and land with other chunks of food in the acid.  
  
I spied a tunnel a few feet from my location along the wall of this red room.  
  
I entered the tunnel and it led upwards. I went to the end and some force lifted me further up and into this large chamber.  
  
The very walls of this chamber were moving, this creature was breathing and I intended on stopping that.  
  
I noticed a large beating object, it looked like the heart of the monster. I took my M16 and fired all I could into the massive organ until blood poured from it and it began to beat very slowly. The chamber than flooded with blood and now I was stuck again.  
  
I swam up to the surface and noticed another passage leading further up the monster.  
  
Climbing along its innards wasn't fun and rather revolting to the touch. Eventually at the top was its rather large brain. Taking aim again I fired all I had at the muscle and it began to shake violently and electricity was all around me and then I felt myself being flung out of its body.  
  
I was back on the platform that wasn't destroyed and the saw the large monster in front of me dying a horrible death screaming in pain and agony.  
  
Before I could witness it stop moving a green flash hit me and I was being summoned to another location.  
  
I stood up and was in some kind of elevator that looked like it was inside Black Mesa but looking out the window of it I saw the alien world. Then the lift stopped and the doors opened.  
  
A man stepped inside with me and hit the button on the side and walked in front of me. Was he a survivor?  
  
He had a wrinkled face and a short black haircut. He wore a fine blue suit and a black tie. In his hand was a briefcase with the Black Mesa logo on it. He dusted himself off with his free hand and then adjusted his tie as the lift began to move downwards.  
  
It shocked me. Quite ironic being startled by an elevator moving when I've faced a horde of death and survived the entire thing.  
  
"Mr. Gray Johnstone. Oh excuse me, I know you prefer to be addressed asssss just Gray. You have truly surprised me with all you have been through."  
  
Then the alien world changed and we were going through the sky. Where were we?  
  
"For someone just starting his hopefully successssful career as someone important he was introduced to this holocaust as it were. For such little training you made it through all the ordeals. I am impresssssed."  
  
"I didn't do this to impress you!" I shouted to him.  
  
"My apologies, I didn't mean to put it that way. Well you seem to be a man of action so I will get straight to the point shall I?" he said as a large flash blinded me. Then the flash was gone.  
  
"What was that?" I asked this suited man.  
  
"Let's just say Black Mesa has taken care of itself." He chuckled in his raspy voice and then he cleared his throat as I heard the mucus in it move. "I am going to offer you a choice. My eeeeemployers have taken note of your great abilities and would like to hire you for a full time job with us to help clean up the mess left by Black Mesa."  
  
"And the other choice?" I asked him.  
  
"Well, perhaps you could experience something truly amazing. I do hope though you do not take this choice." As he finished his sentence the elevator stopped and the bell sounded signaling it.  
  
"Our stop." He said as the doors opened and a large green portal was on the other side. "Step into the portal and I will take that as a sign you want to work with us."  
  
I removed my helmet and let my long brown hair flow down. It stopped just above my eyebrows. My ruby eyes glimmered in the light from the ceiling of this lift. I was thinking it over.  
  
"Time to choose!" He told me.  
  
I made my choice...  
  
"As much as I want to take your offer of employment I'm going to have to decline, because working with you scares me." I told him. The elevator doors closed.  
  
"It looks like we won't be working together. Don't worry Gray no regretsssssss." He hissed at me. Then my body felt weird and I fell to the ground.  
  
When I opened my eyes I was in the seat of a transit car and my hazard suit wasn't on me. I was heading into Black Mesa but I looked around and everything seemed normal. Perhaps everything is back to normal after all and I'm safe at last.  
  
Then the transit car began to speak like usual but in some kind of broken English and I couldn't understand a word of it. It must be broken.  
  
Heading further down into the facility I didn't see the familiar sign of workers and such as the first time I came down here. Where were they all?  
  
Then the train stopped and the door opened and I took a step out and through the small doorway and I saw the most horrifying thing I have ever seen.  
  
It was a series of slaves and alien grunts running experiments on human being in this room. That broken English on the train wasn't because it was broken it was an actual language. The language of these creatures. Soon one of them took me and threw me into this tube and filled it with this liquid. I floated with a mask and a series of plugs hooked to me.  
  
The door opened in front of me in the room and that suited man from before stepped out to greet me.  
  
"I'm sorry we met on such hard terms Gray. Though you can't change things now. You're probably wondering where you are and why these creatures are doing things to humans. I've sent you to an alternate world where the humans and aliens have switched roles. Interesssting don't you agree?" he said before turning and walking away through the door.  
  
I had only lived through these experiments by the aliens for a few hours until my body was thrown into a vat of other dead humans where I slowed drifted into my own death.  
  
SUBJECT: Gray Johnstone  
  
STATUS: Deceased  
  
POST MORTEM: Subject declined offer of employment  
  
Well that's it. I hope the ending doesn't suck but it's a different ending than you might have expected. Hope you all enjoyed. 


End file.
